Egypt has declared three days of mourning after a bomb blast killed at least 25 people during a Sunday liturgy in a chapel next to the main Coptic cathedral in Cairo. (video: Al Jazeera)

Bombing at Egypt’s main Coptic cathedral kills 25(Los Angeles Times) In the rubble outside Egypt’s main Coptic Christian church late Sunday, a crowd held a candlelight vigil for the 25 worshipers killed in a bombing at St. Mark’s Cathedral earlier in the day. The explosion in a chapel adjacent to the cathedral left pews overturned, the floor bloody, strewn with glass and other debris, according to images posted online. “She died a martyr,” Monika Athnasious Botros wrote on Facebook, posting a photo of her elderly mother. She said the bodies had been left on the floor due to a lack of space in the morgue…

Pope calls Coptic pope to express condolences after Cairo attack(CNS) Pope Francis phoned Coptic Orthodox Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria on 12 December, expressing his prayers and condolences for the previous day’s terrorist attack at the Cairo cathedral that left 25 people dead. “We are united in the blood of our martyrs,” the pope told the Orthodox patriarch, according to a Vatican statement…

Thousands of civilians freed from east Aleppo, 700 fighters lay down arms(RT) Over 13,000 civilians have been rescued from militant-held parts of eastern Aleppo in the past 24 hours, while more than 700 militants have laid down their arms and surrendered to the Syrian army. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Major-General Igor Konashenkov says that all of the liberated residents have been accommodated at aid centers, where they are being supplied with warm food and medical aid where needed…

ISIS withdraws from Syria’s Palmyra after Russian strikes(AINA) Russian war planes carried out over 60 strikes overnight on Syria’s Palmyra after Islamic State jihadists re-entered the famed ancient city, halting the offensive, Russia’s defense ministry said Sunday. On Saturday the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human rights monitor said IS jihadists, who were forced out of Palmyra in March, took most of the city back under their control and surrounded the airport…

Iraqis mourn destruction of ancient city of Nimrud(AINA) When ISIS swept into Mosul two years ago, Leila Salih begged the militants not to destroy the Mosul Museum, where she worked, or at the archaeological site at Nimrud, which she helped oversee, just south of the city. “I told them we would destroy the graves ourselves if they just left the buildings standing,” she told NBC News. “I begged them to save Iraq’s history.” But the pleas fell on deaf ears. Several videos released by the militants last year show ISIS fighters using sledgehammers, power tools, and bulldozers to demolish priceless sculptures and stone carvings. What they didn’t destroy with explosives they tore down by hand. Built three thousand years ago — and forgotten for centuries — the ancient city of Nimrud was the second capital of the Assyrian empire, which at its height extended to modern-day Egypt, Turkey and Iran…

Protests in Hungarian border village over new legal restrictions(Vatican Radio) Rights activists have expressed concern about a new local law introduced by a controversial mayor and politician near the Hungarian-Serbian border, banning the public expression of the Muslim religion as well as awareness-raising or other activities that empower homosexuals…

Msgr. John E. Kozar speaks during an interfaith forum on the crisis for Christians in the Middle East at the Sheen Center in New York City on 5 December. (photo: CNS/Gregory A. Shemitz)

CNEWA’s President Msgr. John E. Kozar was one of several prominent leaders of different faiths — including CNEWA’s chair, New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan — who gathered in New York Monday night to discuss some of the threats facing Christians in the Middle East.

Christians in the Middle East face extinction because of genocide, wars and international indifference to their plight, according to panelists at a 5 December interfaith forum in New York.

A concerted multilateral effort to establish a safe haven for them while rebuilding their devastated homelands is preferable to massive permanent resettlement to other countries, including the United States, they said.

Twelve speakers at the Sheen Center for Thought & Culture event explored “The Crisis for Christians in the Middle East,” with a particular focus on vulnerable Christian minorities in Syria and Iraq.

...Msgr. John E. Kozar, president of Catholic Near East Welfare Association, said his organization works with the Eastern churches throughout the Middle East, an area not fully understood or appreciated by those in the Latin church. The charitable and health care efforts particularly by women religious in largely Muslim areas have been well-received, and Christians and others have gotten along well, he said. Nonetheless, there is much outright suffering and persecution, he said.

“Syria is an absolute mess, but the church is still there,” Msgr. Kozar said. Lebanon is at or close to capacity with refugees. Jordan has the greatest concentration of refugees in the world, but its camps are plagued with extortion and a gangland mentality. Christians are considered third-class citizens in Egypt and still suffer reprisals after the ouster of the Muslim Brotherhood. Christians in Kurdistan and Iraq face different challenges.

“We are accompanying Christians who believe that somehow Our Lord will accompany and sustain them. We try to bring a reasonable stability,” he said.

Msgr. Kozar and other speakers underscored the deep historic and cultural connection of the Christians to their lands. “There is a tug of war between the goodwill of people here in the West who want to welcome and adopt (the refugees) and presume it’s best to extract them from where they are, and the church leaders and most of the people who want to stay” in the region and return to their countries when it is safe to do so, Msgr. Kozar said. “Family, faith, and church are connected.”

New York Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan holds an icon of the 21 Coptic Martyrs of Libya as he speaks during an interfaith forum on the crisis for Christians in the Middle East at the Sheen Center in New York City on 5 December. (photo: CNS/Gregory A. Shemitz)

“All of you,” he told those assembled, “have helped me keep a very solemn promise.” As archbishop of New York, he explained, many of his brother bishops from the Middle East frequently visit him, as do priests, religious women and men and lay faithful from those persecuted lands. And he himself, he added, has been honored to visit them in countries such as Iraq, Syria and Lebanon.

His brother bishops, he said, plead with him, “‘Please don’t forget us. We feel alone. We are desperate. We feel isolated.’

“And over and over again,” he continued, “I whisper to them, ‘We will not forget you; I promise.’”

“You have helped me keep that same promise, that we will not forget,” he told the preeminent group of scholars, civic officials, religious leaders and representatives of humanitarian organizations, as well as symposium participants.

“We have a God who is calling us to a sense of justice, we have a God who is calling us to advocacy and charity,” the cardinal said. “These people we can’t forget, my dear friends. They look to us as believers, they look to us as Americans.”

NET-TV from the Diocese of Brooklyn also covered the event. Check out the video report below.

Palestinians walk past a shop selling Christmas decorations on 5 December near Manger Square in Bethlehem, West Bank. After two Christmas seasons in which the political reality had overtaken holiday cheer, people seem primed to finally feel some merriment in Bethlehem.(photo: CNS/Debbie Hill)

Even the Christmas decorations seem more cheerful this year in Bethlehem.

A new display of Santa’s reindeer and sleigh were about to alight at the main traffic circle on Manger Street, and a big white Christmas tree made of lights perched merrily next to them. The official Christmas tree in Nativity Square was a focus of great commotion as pilgrims and locals struck poses for photos and selfies on 5 December. A few days earlier, at the official tree lighting ceremony, the square was packed with hundreds of onlookers ready to welcome the Christmas season to the birthplace of Jesus.

After two Christmas seasons in which the political reality had overtaken holiday cheer, people seemed primed to finally feel some merriment in Bethlehem. In 2014, the summer Gaza war was still keeping away tourists, and last year a spate of stabbings and shootings overshadowed any hope of holiday cheer.

This year, the Israeli separation barrier construction continues to slowly creep around Bethlehem, creating an isolated enclave. There has been no real move toward a long-term peace agreement, nor any easing of travel restrictions or any significant improvement in the economic or political situations, but Palestinians are embracing what they can of the holiday spirit.

“People haven’t started buying the hats yet, but they will in a few more days,” said Laham confidently.

Ashraf and Shahad Natsheh, who are also Muslim, took the afternoon to come from Hebron, West Bank, to take pictures of their 10-month-old daughter Na’ara in front of the official Bethlehem Christmas tree with its life-sized creche and gold-colored ornaments.

“The atmosphere is definitely better than last year, the roads are open and there is more calm,” said Shahad Natsheh, 26. “We come to see the tree because it is beautiful.”

Ian Knowles, the British director of the Bethlehem Icon Centre on historic Star Street, which used to be the main thoroughfare into the city center, said although people are still a bit apprehensive about the general situation, “Christmas hope still flickers.”

Seeing the apparent defeat of Islamic State in several battles in Iraq and Syria has also brought a sense of optimism to the Christian community, which had harbored fears that they might be next if the militants were not stopped, he said.

“People here have family in Jordan and Lebanon, and they were feeling (that this) could happen to them,” said Knowles. “Now they are watching as Christians are slowly returning to their churches and celebrating Masses in the charred remains.”

Catholic tattoo artist Walid Ayash, 39, and his staff stayed up almost half the night cleaning his tattoo studio and barber shop and putting up Christmas decorations.

“Two days ago they lit up the Christmas tree in the city. Everybody is happy. The kids are happy. I have four kids and they are happy,” he said. “Last year it was very sad, the situation was bad, but we hope this year will be better than before.”

“I want to be happy with my family. I am very religious. I thank God I am in Bethlehem. We celebrate. My workers dress like Santa Claus and throw candy for the children. The kids will be here, the atmosphere will be happy. You know, it’s Christmas,” he said.

Cradling one of his white doves — “peace pigeons” as he has dubbed them — in his hands in their rooftop roost above Star Street, Anton Ayoub Mussalam, 75, who is Catholic, said everyone is waiting for Christmas.

From 1987 until 2015, he and his wife, Mary had not had permission to go to Jerusalem, where one of their daughters lives.

“Maybe there will be a happy Christmas,” Mussalam said. “We hope everyone will be happy. We hope there will be a small piece of peace. We need peace like we need food and water.”

In this image from November, men walk in rubble near St. Mary’s Catholic Church and St. Elias Orthodox Church after a bombing in Damascus, Syria. An interfaith panel in New York this week explored how Christians in the Middle East are facing threats from war, indifference and genocide. (photo: CNS/Mohammed Badra, EPA)

Syrian rebels reportedly withdraw from old city(BBC) Syrian rebels have left the last areas they held in Aleppo’s old city, while calling for a five-day truce to allow the evacuation of civilians. Activist monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the pull-back in Syria’s second city came after days of heavy fighting...

Large Syrian refugee population in Lebanon sparks social tensions(Voice of America) The United Nations has launched a four-year crisis response plan for Lebanon it hopes will maintain stability and prevent an internal conflict from breaking out. It is appealing for $2.8 billion to get humanitarian and stabilization support programs underway in 2017. The United Nations does not believe Lebanon is on the brink of collapse but it warns there is a danger the country could implode if the Syrian refugee crisis is not well managed...

Panel: wars, indifference, genocide imperil Mideast Christians(CNS) Christians in the Middle East face extinction because of genocide, wars and international indifference to their plight, according to panelists at a 5 December interfaith forum in New York. A concerted multilateral effort to establish a safe haven for them while rebuilding their devastated homelands is preferable to massive permanent resettlement to other countries, including the United States, they said...

ISIS launches overnight attack against Iraqi troops in Mosul(AP) Iraq special forces captured a new neighborhood Wednesday from the Islamic State group in eastern Mosul, according to a senior commander — the latest gain in a massive military operation now its seventh week. The commander of a joint operations center that oversees the Mosul campaign, Lt. Gen. Abdul-Amir Yarellah, said in a statement that troops had “fully liberated” the al-Elam neighborhood and raised the Iraqi flag over its buildings. Yarellah added that IS militants “suffered losses” without elaborating...

Gaza doctors launch appeal to save children(Al Jazeera) With Gaza’s blackouts lasting 16 hours a day, hospitals have had to resort to using electrical generators. But fuel to operate the generators is increasingly scarce and expensive, posing an intractable challenge...

Bishop Denis J. Madden served the CNEWA family from 1994 until 2005.(photo: CNS/Tyler Osburn)

Joy is a true gift of God, and what a gift it is to those who share in it.

For more than a decade, the CNEWA family delighted in the joy of Denis J. Madden, who as Father Denis joined CNEWA as its regional director for Palestine and Israel in 1994. Two years after engineering a remarkable feat — the restoration of the great dome of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, involving the historically contentious custodians of Christendom’s holiest shrine — Msgr. Madden joined the New York office as CNEWA’s associate secretary general, where he coordinated the expansion of CNEWA’s work in northeast Africa, particularly in Eritrea and Ethiopia. In 2005, Pope Benedict XVI asked Denis to serve as an auxiliary bishop of a particular church, the Archdiocese of Baltimore, where he coordinated the many ministries of Baltimore’s inner city parishes.

It was a move that put to great use his skills as a clinical psychologist specializing in conflict resolution.

But the many editorial meeting battles waged between this author and the editorial board were perhaps the greatest challenges for this man endowed not only with joy, but a steely sense of justice and truth and unyielding compassion and love for the poor and the marginalized.

Bishop Madden is “a good friend, ideal collaborator and a perfect associate,” Msgr. Robert Stern said of the newly appointed bishop. He’s “a very pastoral priest, a man with great concern for the poor and needy. We will miss him.”

And we did.

Yesterday, Pope Francis accepted Denis’ resignation nearly a year after his submitted it according to the norms of canon law. No doubt the Holy Father saw in this man the same qualities that served the CNEWA family and the poor we are honored to serve: joy, selflessness and effectiveness.

Nowhere is the universal nature of St. Nicholas’s popularity more apparent than in the southern Italian city of Bari. In early May I traveled to this bustling port, the capital of Puglia, an agricultural region hugging the Adriatic coast. While traveling through the region I observed bands of nomads, grasping decorated staffs and burdened with backpacks. When I mistook them for Albanian refugees, my traveling companion informed me that these travelers were making an annual pilgrimage to Bari. There, on 9 May, in an impressive medieval basilica that bears his name, the church celebrates the “translation” of the relics of St. Nicholas to Bari.

According to tradition, Nicholas was born in the mid-third century to a wealthy Christian couple in Patara, a town near the southern shores of Asia Minor (modern Turkey). After the premature death of his parents, Nicholas gave up his wealth and entered a monastery, later traveling to Egypt and the Holy Land. He returned to his monastery, hoping to live quietly as a hermit. However, against his will, he was elected as Bishop of Myra, a small town near Patara.

Although little else is known about Nicholas, his popularity rests on his compassion for the poor and his passion for the faith.

“The reason for this special veneration of this special bishop, who left neither theological works nor other writings,” writes Leonid Ouspensky, a noted Russian theologian, “is evidently that the church sees in him a personification of a shepherd, of its defender and intercessor.”

One of the most powerful stories reveals Nicholas’s compassion for the poor. There were three young girls whose father had lost his fortune and, consequently,
their dowries. Due to their poverty, the girls were ignored by all the eligible men. Moved by their plight, Nicholas, under the cover of darkness, went to the man’s home and dropped a bag of gold through an open window. Finding the gold the following morning, the man was overwhelmed and, thanking God, married off his eldest girl.

Several nights later, Nicholas secretly deposited a second bag of gold. Dumbfounded, the man used it for his second daughter’s dowry.

The man, however, was determined to identify his benefactor and waited for the unknown person’s appearance. Again, under the cover of darkness, Nicholas left yet another sum of gold. Hearing a thump, the man rose to his feet and caught up with his mysterious benefactor, whom he recognized immediately. Nicholas demanded silence, binding the man to an oath never to reveal his identity.

St. Nicholas’s generous spirit continues to inspire countless people around the world (where do you think we get the idea of Santa Claus?) and his compassion toward the poor and needy also animates our work here at CNEWA. May he continue to enliven our hearts during this special time of year — and always!

The image above shows Prince Charles attending the consecration of the new St. Thomas Cathedral in London on 25 November. It is the first Syrian Orthodox cathedral in the U.K. Three archbishops from Syria and Iraq were denied visas to enter the U.K. for the dedication because authorities were concerned they would not leave the country. (photo: Catholic Herald)

Syria says it rejects Aleppo ceasefire if rebels remain(Reuters) Syria rejects any ceasefire negotiated by any party in rebel-held eastern Aleppo unless what it describes as terrorist groups there depart, its Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday in a statement carried by state media...

Nineveh Plain Protection Unit seeks to recruit Christians(Fides) The Nineveh Plain Protection Units, a paramilitary organization established in Iraq in 2014, consisting mainly of Assyrian Christians, Syrians and Chaldeans, has announced the opening of a recruitment campaign on a voluntary basis. It is particularly aimed at young men of the local Christian communities of Mosul and Nineveh Plain region willing to participate in military operations to reconquer and defend the towns of the land that had been occupied by the jihadists of ISIS...

Syrian and Iraqi archbishops denied visas to enter U.K.(Catholic Herald) Three archbishops from Iraq and Syria were refused entry into the UK despite being invited by the country’s Syriac Orthodox Church. Archbishop Nicodemus Daoud Sharaf of Mosul, Archbishop of St. Matthew’s Timothius Mousa Shamani and Archbishop Selwanos Boutros Alnemeh of Homs and Hama, were all refused UK visas which would have enabled them to attend the consecration of the UK’s first Syriac Orthodox Cathedral, last month...

Ukrainian Catholics in Canada collect $90,000 to help displaced in Ukraine(New Pathway) The pope called for a special collection to be carried out all over Europe in April 2016 for the needs of Ukrainian people. Many Ukrainian Catholic Eparchies in Canada decided to follow the pope’s call and they too ran collections in the Ukrainian Catholic parishes across the country in May. The Catholic Near East Welfare Association (CNEWA), an agency of the Holy See, founded by Pope Pius XI in 1926, was assigned with the task of sending the collections to Ukraine...

Canada vows to help Lebanon with refugee crisis(Middle East Monitor) Canada has vowed to help Lebanon to cope with the flow of refugees from Syria, Anadolu has reported. The offer of help was made by Minister of Foreign Affairs Stephane Dion at a joint press conference with his Lebanese counterpart, Gebran Bassil. “We hope that Canada’s support will help Lebanon and its host communities build resilience and cope with the ongoing crisis in the region,” said Dion. “Canada and Lebanon have a strong and deeply rooted relationship, and our two countries continue to work closely together to achieve peace, security and stability in the Middle East...”

Christians united by community in Mumbai(The Indian Express) In Kerala, they may have their differences, but when in Mumbai, they identify themselves as a homogenous group — the Malayalee Syrian Christians. Back home in ‘God’s own country’ they could be either Syrian Catholics, Jacobites, Marthomites or Orthodox, all different sects of Syrian Christians — a Christian community from Kerala tracing its origin to Thomas the Apostle. In Mumbai, differences are put aside as the yearning to meet a fellow Malayalee brings them together...

A damaged statue of Mary is seen in a church in Qaraqosh, Iraq, on 25 November.(photo: CNS/Goran Tomasevic, Reuters)

The Syriac Catholic patriarch said he was horrified to see widespread devastation and what he called “ghost towns” during a recent visit to northern Iraq.

Patriarch Ignace Joseph III Younan wrote in an email to Catholic News Service that there was little left in some of the communities that he toured 27-29 November and that “the emptiness of the streets except for military people ... the devastation and burned-out houses and churches” was shocking.

About 100,000 Christians — among them more than 60,000 Syriac Catholics — were expelled from the Ninevah Plain by the Islamic State group in the summer of 2014 as the militants campaigned to expand their reach into Iraq.

Patriarch Younan also called for understanding from the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump about the plight and ordeal of all minorities, including Christians affected by violence in the region.

The patriarch told CNS about “walking through the Christian towns of Qaraqosh, Bartella and Karamles and witnessing the extent of devastation as if we had entered ghost towns!”

Graffiti and inscriptions “expressing hatred toward Christian symbols and doctrine were seen everywhere” on walls near streets, outside and inside houses and churches, he wrote.

“Aside from the looting, destruction of and damage to buildings, we discovered that the terrorists, out of hatred to the Christian faith, set fire to most of the buildings, including churches, schools, kindergartens and hospitals,” the patriarch’s message said, noting that only Christian properties were targeted.

In Qaraqosh — once inhabited by more than 50,000 Christians — the patriarch celebrated the Eucharist 28 November “on an improvised small altar” in the incinerated sanctuary of the vandalized Church of the Immaculate Conception. That church, which had 2,200 seats before its desecration by Islamic State, was built by parishioners in the 1930’s.

Few people could attend the liturgy, among them a few clergy and some armed youth and media representatives, the patriarch said.

“In my short homily, I just wanted to strengthen their faith in the redeemer’s altar and cross, although both were half broken behind us. I reminded them that we Christians are the descendants of martyrs and confessors, with a long history dating back to the evangelization of the apostles,” he wrote.

“I had the intention after its restoration five years ago, and still have it, to ask the Holy Father, the pope, to name this church as a minor basilica,” the patriarch added.

Syriac Catholic Patriarch Ignace Joseph III Younan recently visited Christian villages in Iraq that were liberated from ISIS and described them as being like “ghost towns.”(photo: CNS/Tyler Orsburn)

In addition to the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Qaraqosh, all of the churches the patriarch's delegation visited, including St. Behnam and St. Sarah Monastery, which dates to the fourth century, sustained significant damage or were destroyed.

In opening the trip 27 November in Erbil, which escaped being occupied by the militants, Patriarch Younan celebrated Mass for more than 800 displaced people at Our Lady of Peace Syriac Catholic Church. Located in the capital of the Kurdish region of Iraq, where many of those uprooted from the Ninevah Plain sought refuge, the church recently opened to serve refugees.

The patriarch also said he met with the faith community, religious leaders and nongovernmental organizations to discuss the future of Christianity in northern Iraq.

Based on “what happened in recent times,” the patriarch noted, “it was the overall opinion that none would dare to return, rebuild and stay in the homeland, unless a safe zone for the Christian communities in the Plain of Ninevah is guaranteed.”

He called for a “stable, law-abiding and strong government” to support the establishment of an eventual self-administrative province under the central government of Iraq.

“I therefore reiterate what I have been saying for years. We, Christians in Iraq and Syria, feel abandoned, even betrayed, by the Western politicians of recent times,” Patriarch Younan said.

“We have been sold out for oil and forgotten because of our small number compared to the ‘Islamic Ummah’ (Islamic nation) in which we have lived for centuries.”

The patriarch urged the “so-called ‘civilized world’ to uphold its principles and to seriously defend" the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which he described as “vital for our survival.”

“It is time to stand up and condemn those regimes that still discriminate against non-Muslim communities, with (their) excuses such as ... ‘our law, our education and governing system’ are based on our ‘particularities of culture, history and religion,’” the patriarch continued.

Patriarch Younan expressed his “strong hope” that the Trump administration “will understand our plight and the ordeal of all minorities, including Christians.”

“It is time that the United States be respected around the world,” and most particularly in the Middle East, as “a nation of hope and freedom and not a land of opportunism.”

In this image from Sunday, Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill consecrates a prominent new church in Paris, Saint Trinity, on the banks of the Seine. The complex containing the church is owned by the Russian government and includes a cultural center and a school.Read more and see more images here.(photo: Dominique Boutin/TASS via Getty Images)

In the video above, the Secretary of the Middle East Council of Churches discusses the struggle of Christians in the Middle East today, noting that Christians have always survived persecution and adding, “We have to have hope.” (video: Rome Reports)

A stall in the battle for Mosul: ‘We are fighting the devil himself’(The Guardian) The startling progress of the first few weeks of the campaign to take Iraq’s second city, the terror group’s last urban stronghold in Iraq, has given way to a numbing reality: Isis will not surrender Mosul, and Iraq’s battered military will struggle to take it. Since Iraqi forces entered Gogali, a light industrial neighborhood, in mid-November, the advance has slowed. “When we started, we were talking weeks,” said Hussein. “Now, we hope it will be by early in the new year. But these guys are not cowards. They kill as easy as they breathe...”

Russian field hospital hit in Aleppo(AP) Rebel shelling of the Syrian government-held part of Aleppo killed a Russian nurse in a makeshift Russian hospital in the city on Monday while the Defense Ministry in Moscow said a Russian fighter jet crashed into the Mediterranean Sea after returning from a sortie over Syria. The developments were a blow to Russia, which has been one of the staunchest supporters of Syrian President Bashar Assad in his country’s bitter civil war, now in its sixth year...

Christian village attacked in Egypt(Assyrian International News Agency) Muslim radicals attacked a Coptic Christian village in Upper Egypt last week over rumors that a community center and a meeting hall is being converted into a church. A group of Muslims burned down the community center in Al-Nagameesh village in Sohag Governate and moved to the village to loot the houses and the businesses owned by the Copts, Morning Star News reported...

Orthodox patriarch: ‘Amoris Laetitia’ recalls the mercy of God(CNS) Knowing the debate surrounding Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation on the family, Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople said the document “first and foremost recalls the mercy and compassion of God and not just moral norms and canonical rules...”

Patriarch Gregorios III visits parish in London(ByzCath.org) His Beatitude visited the Melkite parish in London, where he served the Divine Liturgy. Concelebrating were the parish priest, Father Shafiq Abouzayd, the assistant priest Father Robert Gibbons, together with Deacon Richard Downer. His Beatitude preached on the need to remain faithful to the Eastern Christian heritage, as light comes from the East. He also congratulated clergy of the Melkite Church and members of the congregation whose name day falls on this day or in succeeding days: so all those named for St. John of Damascus, St. Barbara and St. Nicholas...